The Poetry Lounge 3: the Power of Performance Study Guide & Lesson
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THE POETRY LOUNGE 3: THE POWER OF PERFORMANCE STUDY GUIDE & LESSON PLAN To order this and other programs call: (888) 570-5400; (310) 839-1500 www.epfmedia.com © 2018 EPF Media All Rights Reserved THE POETRY LOUNGE 3: THE POWER OF PERFORMANCE Spoken Word poetry is a contemporary form of performance that has revitalized young people’s appreciation of the poetic form. Spoken Word can be distinguished from more traditional poetry the way a play can be distinguished from a novel, in that it is written specifically to be performed. Where a traditional poem is often purposefully obscure and is intended for multiple re-readings, spoken word poets have only one chance to communicate their meanings to the audience. Like plays, spoken word poetry is designed to elicit an immediate and visceral audience reaction. Because of this a lot of power must be packed into the poem. The following guide is designed to be used interactively with the Poetry Lounge DVDs. For each poet, we have included material that can help you point out salient features of the poet’s craft to student along with teaching ideas that can be used as prompts to help students in their writing and performance of spoken word poetry. In some cases the power of the poetry comes from the artist’s performance. Just like the skill of an actor can make a play powerful, how the poet performs his/her poetry often has a great deal of impact on how the audience responds. “The Power of Performance” is designed to help students explore how they can use aspects of performance to enhance their poetry. While every poem has important poetic and performance aspects, this guide is designed to emphasize specific features of each poem so that teachers can use them as models to help students in the writing, revising, and performance of their own poetry. Performance is a unique feature of spoken word poetry. Although some aspects of performance need to be introduced to students with ongoing exercises (such as eye contact, voice projection, and movement) some can be taught through using experienced poets as models. There are particular features of language and action that cause the audience to respond to your poetry performance. Here are some suggestions from the Poetry Lounge 3: The Poems From Poetry Lounge 3 1 MUMM-RA VS PANTHRO By Paul Maboon Thunder! Thunder!!! Thunder!!!!!! Thundercats Hooooooooo!!!!!!!! 5th grade I was Panthro! Hands go Wappa! Wappa! Wappa! with my nun chucks to much for any domestic abusing foe! Shoulder straps! Spiked tips! Muscles ripped! The Coolest Thundercat! And even though he was blue, you knew he was black! Back when Mom's only son wasn't afraid to act when we were on our own then He came home "Wonder if he gonna live with us?" Didn't trust him, like most boys do grown men moving in "He spending the night again? How come he got three pieces of fish? I did clean up! He used that dish! Wish he just gone somewhere! That's not fair! He cain't tell me what to do, he ain't my Daddy! I ain’t even do nothing! Why you mad at me?" Because she loved him. She was happy. Next few years instincts wouldn't let it go, let it flow "Paul, Charles said you wanna go fishin?" No! "I'm watchin Thundercats, all-day-long! Playing with action figures singin that song Dun Da Dun da Dun Da Da, Thundercats are loose!" In Today's Episode The evil Mumm-Ra The Ever-Living aka Charles, is living with Panthro's mom But Panthro uses his nun-chuks to beat up Mumm-Ra till he's gone! Oh no! Panthro! We're under attack! Calm down! What's wrong WilyKat? I was cruising in the Thundertank when Jacklman jacked me, for The Eye of Thundera! And then he went and slapped me! Thhhh! AHHHH! Mumm-Ra's using the The Eye to hypnotize your mom! Lion-O gave me the Sword of Omens, should we tell him what's wrong? Lion-O's a punk! I should have been the leader! Then I could date Cheetara and have some baby pather-cheetas! Alright Mumm-Ra I'm bringing out my nun-chucks! Wappa! It's time to die! Stop hypnotizing my mom! Wappa! And give back the Thundera's eye! Wake up Mom! Mumm-Ra's evil! Remember when it was just us? "Panthro! Watch out Mumm-Ra's power is about to bust!" Booom! Quick! Everybody run to your room! Cover your ears. Get under the cover! Get under the cover! Boom! Get under the cover! Get under the cover! 2 Get under the cover! Stop hittin my Mother! Stop hittin my Mother! Stop hittin my Mother! stop hittin my mother 3 DEFERRED RACE By Brotha Gimel So I'm hanging on the block with my crew, right? And Uncle Sam approaches in the form of Popo. My boys disperse, straight get ghost. But since I decide to stay, Jake. I mean, Uncle Sam told me had this task you wanna throw my way as his partner's beginning to pat me down he's like, don't bother turning around the challenge is this if you can run 100 + 1 yards non stop on a straight away beaten path you'll be granted total and complete liberation. In other words, we'll stop sweatin' you Can you do it, boy? Aren't you gonna clock or me or nothin'? Shooff. I take off with all the intensity and vigor my little body can Muster. I'm gonna win. With my eyes on the prize of my imagination's favorite muse. Freedom. Conquering my life's insecurities and inhibitions while increasing intuition one yard at a time. Diminish your self hate with a high stepped sense of pride and astride of [sovereign awareness] That's my encouragement. Capable of making calculated[snap decisions]like putting them up and putting them down in a flash. This is the dash of a lifetime. A generation. A a race. Run! 60 yards in I begin to contemplate the responsibilities of my future emancipation as possible. Run! For all the black activists, artists, dreamers and freedom fighters who have never left for the promised land. Run! I own up to your ideals, each one, teach one, leading by example and not letting you down. The weight on my shoulder I don't mind if it's how I'll be defined. By the 90 yard line I'm starting to feel like the weight is over. Nothing can stop me now, social progress is mine. 4 I attack 95 with tears in my eyes and a feeling I've never been deprived [by the eyes in the glasses at my 9 to 5] Fatigued and winded I oppose 96 willing to commit to a strategy to rehabilitate convicts Defy gravity 'cause it is not a coincidence that I'm saying goodbye half hazardly as 97th and 98 th yards are overcast by ambition and fate. I grind out 99 with upraised spine and my chin just got no more obstacles to now bump my chest than glory, bam! I'm stopped in my tracks, unable to make the final yard mark. I'm reaching for the door to freedom but I can't quite reach the knob, there's something stopping me, and it's-- There's an anklet. It's nice, it's like platinum and gold and with some diamonds on it. Oh, and the diamonds-- Look at that chain! Oh, that's a really nice chain, man. That chain's long enough it's like four, five hundred years long I can put some joints around my wrist I can trade it in and put some joints around my neck and have a whole matching set on me to flash on the block. I could take the rest of it and trade it in for a new whip. Brand new mansion. I'll be the flyest dude on this block! In my new 500 Benz. Thinking of the Benz. I was going somewhere. I was gonna get-- But before that I had to-- We were gonna-- It was-- Damn. Guess my race got deferred. 5 COURAGE By Crystal Irby I’ve been in the valley Wishing I was on the mountain top I’ve been on the sand Wishing I was in the ocean I’ve been in the darkness Praying for the light I’ve been in the morning Praying the night So I could cry Just a little bit longer for you And I’ve been on earth Praying for heaven I’ve been where broken hearts go And I don’t wanna see the end of the world anymore So I finally got the courage To swallow my cries And I finally got the courage To stop believin’ your lies And I finally got the courage To stop waiting on your phone call And I finally got the courage To take those dead roses off the wall And I finally got the courage To say no And the world didn’t end Like I thought it would And I finally got the courage To let you go And I kept on breathin’ Like I…Like I never thought I could So I finally got the courage To pray to God to get over you I mean to really get over you And I finally got the courage To take your photographs outta plain view And I finally got the courage To wash your T-shirts So they don’t feel like you 6 And I finally got the courage To delete your numbers From my phone So I won’t call And I finally got the courage to realize You don’t miss me at all When I check my messages And I don’t hear your voice When I check my caller ID And I don’t see your name On my birthday…the holiday…or just Wednesday So I finally got the courage To stop thinkin’ I was born into this world just to love you And I finally got the courage To stop thinkin’ being by your side is all I could ever do And I finally got the courage To stop fantasizing and rehearsing our reunion Because I finally got the courage To realize our time had reached its conclusion So I finally got the courage To be mad at you for leavin’ me And I finally got the courage To stop going to the places I knew you’d be Dressed in my best outfit For you to see To make you realize Just how much you really/really missed me So I finally got the courage to realize Maybe you and I weren’t written in the stars And I finally got the courage To put peroxide on all my scars To cleanse my wounds So my heart would have no bars And I finally got the courage To stop missing the smell of you on my pillow And I finally got the courage Too stop missing you lying beside me And I finally got the courage To stop missing you looking into my eyes To stop missing you touching me Stop missing you holding me Stop missing you kissing me 7 Stop…missing…you So give me the gold medal And the heavy weight belt I ran the longest distance And I took the hardest blow Give me the trophy and the crown That reads Broken heart healed/Lost self found Engrave my name on a plaque Write the date in the history books Today I did the hardest thing I ever had to do Today I woke up and realized I finally got the courage To get over you 8 MONSTERS By Poetri I have demons.